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View Full Version : Julies Bridal in Detroit - TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE



susanelizabeth
02-19-2001, 05:22 PM
I went in last summer to look at bridesmaid's dress and found one that I liked. Went back a couple of months later to make sure that it was still the one that I wanted. The sales woman told me that if I ordered them there that we would receive 16% off and free shipping as all of my bridesmaids live out of town. We looked around to see if this was the best deal and it was. So on December 18th I faxed them a letter telling them the dresses that I wanted to order and the terms that we had discussed and to call me with any questions. My bridesmaids called the following day to put a deposit on the dresses. As soon as we put our money down the attitude of all of the people at the dress shop changed. They we're and still have been rude every time I call them. I called them in the middle of January to ask when the dresses might be in, and they told me that they had no idea and it would take 4 months from the date of order. I told them that I wasn't positive of that date and they told me to get it straight and call them back and hung up on me. About 2 weeks (approx. Feb 6th) later someone from their shop called and told me that the dresses were in and that they had to come and pick them up because they weren't a warehouse and couldn't hold my dresses forever. I called them back to let them know that the dresses that we ordered weren't going to be picked up because they were being shipped out and they said that they were going to pay for it. They told that they would have never said that and did I have it writing? I told them no and they said if it want in writing no one said it to me. They then told me they weren't going to pay for the shipping. I tired to get the owner on the phone and she refused to get in the phone. A woman named Rich got on the phone and told me that no one ever pays for shipping. When I explained to her that the other dress store we were going to go with told us that they would pay for and that's when Julie's said that they would pay for shipping so that we would send them our business. She said that she'd never heard of that before. I then told her that we had also gotten 16% off of all of the dresses she told me no that it was 15%. I asked her to reconsider, as this had been the worst experience in any retail establishment. She assured me that this had never happened before and that everyone had always had a great experience there and she would give me the 16% off but I would still have to pay for shipping. I told her to put the shipping on my credit card, as I didn't think that my girls should have to pay for that. After all of my complaints they still have been extremely rude to my bridesmaids when they call and to me as well.
As a side note I posted on www.theknot.com and www.weddingchannel.com my complaints to let other brides that they haven't been up front with me. And I've gotten back several responses I'm attaching them:
1. OH!!! I'm all over this one... This is about one of my bridesmaids who is getting married next year... Here we go...
First, she called Julie's to see if they had a dress that she had been admiring in a magazine. They said they did. She and her mom and sister drove 2 hours down there only to find out that they had totally LIED to her. But, they said that if she gave them some money, they would bring it in for her.. So, she did that.. And while she was there she found a veil that she loved and ordered that from them.
Second visit.. Julie's said that there was a trunk show coming and THE dress was going to be coming. She drives down again only to find out that they LIED again. She had called just that morning to make sure that they DID in fact have that dress. They said yes. When she got there, they said, oh sorry, we sold it this morning! Yeah right!! So she left.
Over that past couple weeks she did some digging. Found out from the lady that owns ARENA bridal, who was very helpful and called the manufacturer for her that the dress had NEVER been sent to Julie's. It was on its way, but it was never there! They are liars!! Just to top it all off... She called Julie's last week to get a projected date on when her veil would be in... The girl on the phone said, "Oh, it's here!" She said it must have just come in on that days' shipment. So she asked me to go down there with her. And that was yesterday...
We got down there yesterday and at the front desk asked for the veil. 2 employees confirmed that it was there in the back room. The guy went and brought it out. It was in a bag on a hanger, all nice and neat, with her invoice stapled to it... She could have paid for the balance and walked out... But, she asked if we could go in a dressing room and inspect it before we took it home.. Well, after we looked it over for about 2 seconds, we knew that it was NOT a new veil. The comb was upside down, there was a rip in it, and it was dingy. IT WAS THE STORE'S SAMPLE VEIL!!! They tried to sell it to her!!!
To make a long story a little shorter, we argued with those women for 45 minutes. Julie actually tried to tell us that she had the veil in the bag because sometimes the manufacturer needs her to SEND it to them to make sure they are making the right one! And her employees must have made a mistake.. What a load of crap!! What about other girls that want to look at that veil? Plus, my friend knew for a fact that another girl had ordered that same veil the same day she did, and the other girl's name wasn't stapled to the bag with an invoice, etc!
In the end, Julie ignored us and wouldn't talk to us. She pawned off the issue to one of her employees. Julie does NOT know how to do business!! She should have dealt with us HERSELF! When we were ready to leave, the sales lady went and asked Julie if she wanted to say goodbye (because she knew we still weren't happy) and Julie said, bluntly, "No!"
They offered to give my friend a discount, which was NOT SUFFICIENT, and they were not sorry. They KNEW that we were right, but treated us like xxxx, probably because we are "younger", which xxxxxx me off more. So, we left. My friend is going to try her hardest to cancel the order.
But, on a brighter note, We then went to Arena Bridal! They are SOOOO NICE!! Janice, the owner, is a sweetheart and helped us out a lot. She also told us this story about a bride that came to her because she had a bad experience at Julie's. The bride wanted Arena to do her alterations because she didn't trust Julie's. Well, while Janice was pressing the dress, she found the tag on the inside of it. THE DRESS WAS JULIE'S SAMPLE!!! Janice never told that bride the truth. It would have just ruined it for her, you know?
JULIES BRIDAL DOES NOT DESERVE ANY OF YOUR MONEY!! I CAN NOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH!!
2. I WAS going to order my dress, MOH, 3 bridesmaids, and a flower girl dress from them, but they were much more expensive than Arena Bridal and PLUS - they charged for alterations. They were very rude when I asked if there would be some sort of discount if we had that many people. They said "No.... we don't give discounts on small parties - only if there were 12 or more girls!!!". (How was I supposed to know that my bridal party was "small".)? LOL... what a joke!!! Try Arena Bridal in Shelby Township! They were so nice and the service was great!!! We ordered all the dresses from them.

onalee
02-20-2001, 10:20 PM
I'm also in the Detroit area, and thought I would mention a couple places I've dealt with. First, Blaga's bridal in Sterling Heights. I called around to a number of stores looking for a particular Maggie Sottero gown. The girl who answered the phone at Blaga's told me she had the gown I was looking for. I drove 20 miles to the store, to find out that not only did they not have the gown, they did not have a single Maggie Sottero in the store. Another shop I went to was Diane's Dream Brides in Livonia. I haven't ordered anything, but the people there were very helpful and pleasant, and it was the most organized and easy to shop salon I was in. Good luck!

Pipski
06-13-2001, 09:55 PM
Hi - I'm also from the Detroit area and looking for a good bridal salon. (I'm so sorry to hear of your experience)

Has anyone had any experience with Gemini Formals on Schoenerr?

Also, does anyone have any information about a brand of dreses by Exclusives Bridals by A.C.E?

Thanks for the help.

cicello
08-18-2001, 06:24 AM
I just wanted to say that I had a great experience at Julies. They were helpful in getting my dress in earlier than needed and were able to make my dress look wonderful after I had lost so much weight due to nerves. They really made me feel like my day was special. I would definitely recommend trying them out. Several friends have since gone and have had good experiences as well. Good Luck.